St. Joseph City Council approves year-long pause on new data centers after public concern

ST. JOSEPH, Mo. (KQTV) -- The St. Joseph City Council approved an emergency ordinance to temporarily pause new data center projects within the city.

The emergency ordinance passed unanimously with an 8-0 vote after the council added language proposed by Council member Gary Wilkinson.

Wilkinson said the ordinance needs to provide a clear timeline for city leaders to learn more about data center projects during the pause. He then made the motion for a 12-month period.

According to the ordinance, the year-long suspension would provide the city with the opportunity to gather information, evaluate best practices, engage stakeholders and establish a transparent and predictable framework for future projects.

Additionally, the suspension period would provide city officials an opportunity to speak with retained experts who will assess potential impacts and develop recommendations regarding zoning standards, infrastructure considerations, operational requirements and community benefit expectations.

The ordinance will also direct the city manager to provide actions to address the unique characteristics, demands and impacts of data center construction and development.

During public comment, residents voiced concerns about data center development, with many calling for an 18-month moratorium and the creation of a citizens advisory committee.

"This will help ensure we have been good stewards of our community," St. Joseph resident Veronica Hupp said. "In section three, in order to gain public input in a productive matter and to ensure transparency, I feel there needs to be a citizens advisory committee board to work alongside the city manager, the staff of the city manager and the council.

St. Joseph resident, Jim Weidinger said he trusts the council, and wants the council to maintain transparency.

"Be prepared to state the reason why you voted yes or no. In terms that common people such as myself can understand. I didn't go to law school, but I don't think I'm stupid," he said.

Not everyone is opposed to the data center coming to the city. One resident said St. Joseph has a chance to compete in one of the fastest-growing industries in the world, and should take it.

"This conversation isn't about one data center; it's about whether St. Joseph intends to compete for industries that will shape the next generation," Doug Williams said. "Our city has missed out on opportunities before while other communities move faster and plan more strategically. We shouldn't make that mistake again."

After the vote on the ordinance, Council member Russell Moore asked the council to consider creating a citizens advisory committee for data center development.

"I believe that the people should have a say about it; a lot of them have already asked for an advisory committee," Moore said. "They are beneficial to the council when the council makes their final decision."

One Member of the "Say No to Data Centers" group said they were pleased with the council's decision to approve a one-year pause on new data center proposals.

"We are overjoyed," St. Joseph resident Conni Muff said. "We wanted input; we wanted them to take their time and not rush this project, and tonight, listening to each one of them speak, they listened, which is what we wanted all along."

Even though the group called for an 18-month moratorium, they are fine with the year-long pause.

"They initially last week talked about six months. We felt like that was too quickly," Muff said. We prefer 18 months, obviously, but 12 months we're overjoyed.

Muff emphasized the importance of the community having a presence in these meetings.

"If we're not at the table, how can we make sure that protectors are in place to protect us? What's this been about all along is our water, our electricity, the noise pollution and the light pollution," she said. If we don't have players at the table, we can't ensure we're being protected from the harmful effects of data centers.

The "Say No to Data Centers" group said it wants to thank the community for standing behind them through this process.

"For not for those people, letters, phone calls and emails, we wouldn't be here today. From the bottom of all our hearts, thank you to the community who supported us. We couldn't be here without you," Muff said.

KQ2 spoke with city officials after the meeting about the next steps since the ordinance passed. Officials said they're not sure what the next steps look like.